After ensuring Okereman and Jeff had completely left,
“You seemed quite fearsome.”
Redian commented to me. It seemed he had observed my demeanor in the dining hall earlier.
“Only now you realize? That’s the kind of person I am.”
Redian chuckled lightly in response to my words. His smile felt more pronounced.
“Hmm… Doesn’t the mask feel uncomfortable?”
“It’s fine, for now.”
Though I had him wear the mask to protect him, part of me felt sorry for making him endure it. Why did he have to wear such a thing for what he’d done?
“Come to my room in the evening.”
“…Pardon?”
For a moment, Redian’s eyebrows slowly furrowed.
“After training, clean up and come up to my room.”
“…”
A silence lingered for a while.
“Aren’t you going to eat something too? You didn’t even enter the dining hall.”
“Ah… so.”
Only then did Redian, who seemed somewhat confused, open his mouth. “Are you intending to feed me dinner?”
“Yes.” I nodded without hesitation. It seemed he wasn’t much of an eater, so I thought keeping him close and ensuring he ate properly was best.
“By the way, Master.”
Redian murmured while gazing down at me. “How much I… that night…” He bit his lip as if deciding against continuing his sentence.
That night? If he was referring to the night we shared (sort of), the memory made me chuckle.
“Do you know how beautifully you slept that night?”
“…”
“It made me think I should always have you sleep by my side.”
His peaceful slumber without sedatives was just so lovely. Sometimes, when I lay down to sleep, the image of his eyelashes would come to mind.
“Well, I…”
Unlike me, Redian’s expression…
“It was very difficult for me.”
Seems somewhat complex.
* * *
It was that evening,
“Milady, aren’t you going up to the banquet hall?”
“Why bother when Father isn’t even there? They’ll just be drinking anyway.”
I stepped out onto the terrace, seeking some fresh air. With the regular assembly of nobles upcoming, the banquet hall was lively with a festive atmosphere. However, the duke always went on a personal reconnaissance mission on the eve of such major events and was therefore absent.
“Daisy, could you bring me something to drink from the banquet hall?”
“Yes, Milady.”
After Daisy left, I was alone on the terrace. Looking over the bustling estate, I felt a strange mix of emotions. Compared to my other lives, the Duke was quite a good father, and Daisy, my personal maid, was also kind and gentle. But…
In that confined space with Redian, for the first time, I felt an unfamiliar sense of relief. As if I no longer had to struggle on my own, a sense of security.
This is dangerous. Ah, indulging in such soft emotions wasn’t going to lead to anything good. I stretched to shake off the feeling.
The late summer breeze had become cooler. The training ground was still lit up, indicating that everyone was still working hard. The monster hunting contest was fast approaching. But…
This must be intuition. Despite all the preparations, I couldn’t shake off a lingering sense of unease.
It was then.
Hmm? Is it Daisy? I heard footsteps approaching the terrace.
She couldn’t have returned this quickly.
Anyone who knew their way here would be familiar with the inside of the castle.
Could it be Luna? Considering the event in the dining hall, Luna might be looking for me.
“Who’s there…?”
“What are you looking at?”
I was taken aback by the presence that appeared before me. Ash Benio, why are you here again?
“Who invited you here?”
Knowing that Ash and I were once engaged, I knew he had attended Felicite’s regular meetings. But now, what business did he have here?
“Ah, my father asked me to deliver a gift to His Grace.”
“…”
“I was going to leave it and go since he had gone scouting.”
Ash muttered, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, “Then I happened to meet Jeff. He insisted so much that I joined the banquet.”
Jeff is the duke’s second brother’s son, Okereman’s son. Thus, he’s the duke’s nephew.
“We haven’t seen each other in a long time. We used to play together whenever I visited.”
It seemed Jeff had brought Ash to the banquet. Knowing full well that his cousin had unilaterally broken off the engagement, what was he thinking?
“I waited for you at the banquet, but you never showed up.”
His normally soft eyes seemed to have become more languid after drinking a little whiskey.
“I have no interest in other people’s events.”
“…”
“Especially since I used to have a reason to be here as your fiancé, but not anymore.”
Watching Ash, I couldn’t help but think him shameless. How can he act like that? After showing himself in such a state during the kidnapping incident… And now acting as if nothing had happened. There were no witnesses anyway.
I didn’t plan to confront him about it now. After all, I had gained something from his game too, so I hadn’t really lost anything.
“Then enjoy yourself before you go.”
“Siani.”
But then,
“Who is Rere?”
…What? I stopped in my tracks.
“I was wondering who Rere was that made you abandon me.”
The night wind carried Ash’s deep voice.
“You always ran to me first whenever something happened.”
Turning around,
“When the shelf collapsed, and the dishes fell. And when I was scolded by my father and left the meeting room.”
His face wasn’t his usual smiling or arrogantly confident one. Perhaps this was truly…
“You were the first to come to me.”
Ash with a calm demeanor, which made people wonder if it was his true face.
“He’s your knight, right? I heard you’re always with him.”
Ash smirked.
“…Is that true?”
“Who told you that story?”
But my expression involuntarily soured. Already worried about Jeff possibly plotting something for the competition, now someone had informed Ash about Redian’s existence.
“Who said that?”
“Is that what’s important now?” Ash’s smile vanished instantly. “I’m asking you, Siani Felicite.”
“…”
His voice grew lower. “Is finding out who touched your precious knight more important than answering my question?”
I thought to myself, what is this situation? Ash’s figure under the moonlight felt excessively mysterious.
“We’ve spent years together as friends and fiancés.”
His shirt buttons were undone, and his neatly combed hair was now disheveled.
“And you’ve only been with that brat for a few months,” Ash mumbled, head bowed. “How could you do this to me? How could you… when you saw my face bleeding…”
His scattered blond hair obscured his eyes. He was undoubtedly handsome, but…
Is he drunk? What was he trying to say? I might have splashed water on his face if it weren’t for his looks.
“I waited for you outside the corridor all day. You were really bad.”
“That’s why I warned you to be careful because I took the wrong medicine.”
“What kind of medicine did you take? Tell me, and I’ll find you an antidote, no matter the cost.” Ash seemed to believe my story about taking the wrong medication, just like Irik did.
Then, Ash, who had looked away, glared at me. There was a trace of resentment in his tone. “I waited, so I know how slow and long it felt.”
I told Ash, “Thanks to you, I was treated like a human being for the first time, and you also gained a lot by using me.”
“…”
“We’ve done enough, I think.”
In other novels I’ve been possessed, the breakup was clear. Contracts were torn in front of each other, or divorces were granted in court. But Ash and Siani had only broken off their engagement, leaving things somewhat unresolved.
If it were my usual self, I would have left without leaving any chance for reconciliation… But it felt like there had been genuine feelings between us.
“We never properly said goodbye.”
So, I decided to put an end to it here.
“Thank you for everything.”
“…”
I turned and walked away.
Ash remained standing there until I had completely left the terrace. He didn’t hold me back or call my name like before… He just stood there, hiding his expression in the moonlight.
I feel weirdly bad for him……..